arpReach Team

Set up Mandrill with arpReach

by

Set-up mandrill smtp Setting up and configuring arpReach to use the Mandrill SMTP service is simple and straight-forward.

Follow the instructions below.

These instructions assume that you have already set up your Mandrill account.

If not you will need to create an account at:
https://mandrill.com/signup/

Step 1

Login to Mandrill at:
https://mandrillapp.com/login/

Select the ‘SMTP’ option

choose sending method

Re-input your password to access the settings

 

verify mandrill password

You will need to create an API key. To do this click on ‘Add API Key’

setup an api keyThe screen will now display all of the information you need. Copy the following:

  • The Host smtp address
  • The Port
  • Your SMTP username (normally the username for Mandrill)
  • An API Key

copy smtp details with api key

Now login to arpReach

Navigate to: Setup > Email Systems > Add an Email System

In the ‘Settings’ Tab, Type in a name to help you recognise your Mandrill SMTP system and a description

 

add email system in arpreach

Click on the ‘Options’ Tab

In the Server Settings section > Sending Method – Select ‘SMTP’ from the dropdown.

options select smtp in arpreach

Input the details from Mandrill into the appropriate fields of the ‘Server Settings’ section.

Press the ‘Save Email System’

add mandrill settings

Press the ‘Test Settings’

In the event that the test fails to connect to Mandrill, there are primarily three main causes

  1. The Mandrill SMTP port is incorrect – Try changing to port 25
  2. Your hosting company have blocked the SMTP ports – contact your hosting company for assistance
  3. You have incorrectly applied your username or password – double check

setup bounce notification address

The final thing to do is configure the Mandrill system to return Bounce notification to your arpReach system. Log back into your Mandrill system, navigate to ‘Settings’
Input the catchall email address you use for your arpReach installation into the ‘Forward Bounce Notifications to The Address’ field.
Press Save

New release in Alpha Testing

by

release news software updateSince we acquired arpReach in February there have been lots of things going on behind the scenes to improve it and the services we offer.

The first thing we did was set up a questionnaire to ask our clients what they wanted to see and to get some general feedback on where we can help.  Based on the results of what we learnt or team has been hard at work and we are please to let you know that our first update has now gone in to alpha testing.

We’re not going to spoil the surprises at this stage but what we can tell you that we’ve added some new features as well as squashed quite a few bugs.

We are aiming to have ‘our’ first update released for the beginning of July which gives us time to complete our initial testing and also beta testing with some of the existing client base.  If you would like to be a part of our beta-testing team, get in touch.

In the coming weeks:

Apart from the testing we will also be releasing more news about what we’ve been doing, what we found out and sharing with you some of the things we’ve introduced and plans for the future.

 

 

New Owners of arpReach promise bright future for business data management

by

Kevin new arpReach ownerMutual Advantage Ltd, web marketing and ecommerce experts based in Suffolk UK, are delighted to announce their acquisition of arpReach from ECom24 Ltd.

arpReach, the innovative email marketing and contact management software, is set to become more than a regular list management tool. Used by businesses of all sizes to communicate with their own markets in a more relevant manner, the software tracks detailed results to generate market intelligence. This new chapter in the product’s history is set to transform how businesses use their data to reach prospects and customers to generate more sales.

The acquisition completed on 1st February. The new management team will consult with the existing arpReach clients to gain a comprehensive understanding of their needs to be incorporated into the new product development roadmap.

Kevin Polley, Managing Director of Mutual Advantage, who has been an avid user of the software since 2001, says ‘arpReach is an astonishing piece of software. The solid platform that ECom24 Ltd developed during the last 14 years combined with our own marketing and development expertise will create a much more powerful business tool. We will work closely with clients to involve them in our future product development plans. Current arrangements for support and installation will remain in place.’

Neil Morgan, the original developer of arpReach and Director of ECom24 Ltd., comments ‘After spending 14 years developing a world class product, I will remain involved in a consultancy capacity and look forward to playing a part in some exciting new areas. I’m fully confident that Kevin and the team at Mutual Advantage are the right people to take arpReach to the next level. It’s a win, win, win for everyone.’

Multi-Threaded Sending Is Almost Here!

by

speedIt has been some time in coming but after a few false starts, multi-threaded sending for SMTP is almost ready for launch.

Multi-thread capability will be included with arpReach Gold. Multi-threaded sending will not be available in arpReach Standard.

Sending email simultaneously using multiple processes is a very complex system to manage. We are pleased to say we have achieved it with arpReach. Massively increased speeds are available when sending through local and remote SMTP providers such as Mandrill, Sendgrid, Amazon SES and Mailjet.

Look out for the update when the software will be made available in the arpReach hub.

As mentioned, multi-threaded sending will be available in arpReach Gold. If you have arpReach Standard and want to upgrade to Gold so that you are ready to take advantage of the new multi-threading features, you can do so here:

http://arpreach.com/customer_upgrade

arpReach Team

STOP PRESS – Multi-Threaded Sending

by

STOP PRESS – Multi-Threaded Sending
October 11th, 2013
Hey guys,

Just a quick (and exciting!) update before the weekend kicks in.

We’ve been working on multi-threaded (parallel processing) code that REALLY speeds up the sending of email through third party SMTP providers like Amazon SES, SendGrid etc. What it does is open multiple connections to the SMTP provider and sends a batch of emails at the same instant instead of one by one.

Why is this a great feature in arpReach?

Well, one of the downsides of using remote SMTP providers is that it can be a slower way to send email than sending from your own server’s email software. This is because of all the digital “chat” that needs to take place between your server and the remote SMTP server.

Here at arpReach, we have solved that problem with complex code (that is a breeze to use) and no messy plugins or having to make any changes on your server or hosting account settings.

We hope you like (and profit) from it.

arpReach Team

Next Steps for October

by

next stepsWelcome to Next Steps for October 2013!

We’re back after the summer recess and ready to hit the ground running.

Next Steps is published at the beginning of each month and it’s where we update you on what’s happening in the world of arpReach.

Here’s what we’re focusing on this month…

 

– arpReach 1.3.001 with API is coming soon
– arpCloud hosting taking off
– free installation is available (for now at least)

arpReach 1.3.001 with API is coming soon

Over the summer, we have been working hard on the full API for arpReach and we expect it to launch in the coming weeks. Our aim is to have it available by the end of October, subject to final development and testing.

While arpReach has always had simple integration using standard HTTP posts, this is a full API that gives you external access to many of the functions within arpReach. The API is fully documented and is designed to be easy to use for anyone with previous API programming experience.

API

More API details will be announced as they become available.

arpCloud hosting taking off

We’d like to say a HUGE thank you to all customers who have subscribed to the arpCloud hosting service for larger lists. Run by email delivery experts, arpCloud is a very cost-effective way to outsource delivery while keeping your costs down, even when compared with ultra-cheap providers such as Amazon SES.

Check out arpCloud here

arpCloud
Free installation is available (for now at least)

We strive to make time available for free professional installation but this isn’t always possible due to other work we’re doing to improve arpReach, such as the new API.

Click here to find out if free installation is currently available

That’s it for this month’s Next Steps.

Have a great October!

arpReach Team